Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. (NYSE: VSI), an omni-channel, specialty retailer of nutritional products, today announced preliminary results for the three months ended September 29, 2018. Total net sales in the third quarter were $276.6 million compared to $282.4 million in the same period of the prior year.

Reported earnings per share (EPS) from continuing operations in third quarter 2018 was $0.08, compared to a loss per share from continuing operations of $3.60 in the same period of the prior year. Results in third quarter 2018 include $0.6 million pre-tax expenses associated with management realignment and the closure of the New Jersey distribution center and a $1.3 million Federal income tax benefit. Third quarter 2017 results included goodwill and trade name impairment charges totaling $105.7 million pre-tax, and $2.3 million of pre-tax expenses related to the closure of the New Jersey distribution center. Excluding these special items, EPS from continuing operations was $0.04 in third quarter 2018 flat with third quarter 2017. (Refer to Table 4 at the end of this press release for a reconciliation.)

Commenting on the quarter's results, Sharon Leite, CEO stated, "The team is making progress against the priorities outlined earlier this year. Sales and margins are improving and the organization is steadfast in our ability to improve these metrics further. Progress has also been made with our vendors, which has allowed us to test new categories as well as bring new and exclusive products to market."

"I am delighted to be a part of The Vitamin Shoppe organization. We will be taking transformative, strategic actions to expeditiously turn around the company and position us to drive sustainable growth. The team has made progress as evidenced by our achievements to date, however there is still much more work to do" concluded Ms. Leite.

Third Quarter 2018 Results

Total sales of $276.6 million in the quarter were 2.0% lower than the same period of the prior year. Total comparable sales were down 1.9% in the quarter. As the Company continues to advance its omni-channel initiative, digital comparable net sales, which includes vs.com and Auto Delivery, increased 22.1% in the quarter. The Company opened one store in the quarter and closed three.

Cost of goods sold, which includes product, distribution and store occupancy costs, were $189.9 million, 3.0% lower than the same period of the prior year. Third quarter 2017 included a $2.0 million charge associated with closing the New Jersey distribution center.

Gross profit of $86.7 million was flat with the $86.6 million reported in third quarter 2017. Reported gross profit as a percentage of net sales was 31.3% in third quarter 2018, compared to 30.7% in the same period of 2017. Excluding the special items mentioned above, gross profit was $88.6 million in third quarter 2017 and the adjusted gross profit as a percentage of sales was 31.4%. The third quarter 2018 year-over-year decrease was primarily due to deleverage in supply chain and occupancy partially offset by improvements in margin from more favorable pricing and promotions and lower costs through vendor partnerships. (Refer to Table 4 at the end of this press release for a reconciliation.)

Selling, general and administrative expenses (SG&A), including operating payroll and related benefits and advertising expense, was $82.7 million for the quarter ended September 29, 2018, compared with $84.4 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2017. SG&A as a percent of revenue was 29.9% in third quarter 2018 flat with third quarter 2017. On an adjusted basis, SG&A as a percentage of sales was 29.7% compared to 29.8% in third quarter 2017.

Operating income in third quarter 2018 of $3.2 million compared to operating loss of $103.8 million in the same period of the prior year. Third quarters 2018 and 2017 included goodwill, trade name and store impairment charges of $0.7 million and $106.0 million, respectively. Adjusted for the items noted in Table 4 for both third quarters 2018 and 2017, adjusted operating income was $3.9 million in third quarter 2018 compared with an adjusted operating income of $4.2 million in third quarter 2017. The adjusted operating margin was 1.4% in third quarter 2018 compared with 1.5% in the same period of the prior year. (Refer to Table 4 at the end of this press release for a reconciliation.)

Reported net loss was $1.7 million for third quarter 2018 compared to net loss of $86.2 million in the same period of the prior year. Net income from continuing operations was $1.9 million compared to a net loss from continuing operations of $83.4 million in third quarter 2017.

Reported loss per share was $0.07 in third quarter 2018, compared to a loss per share of $3.72 in third quarter 2017. Earnings per share from continuing operations were $0.08 in third quarter 2018 compared to a loss per share from continuing operations of $3.60 in third quarter 2017. Earnings per share from continuing operations on an adjusted basis (for the items described in Table 4) in third quarter 2018 were $0.04 flat with third quarter 2017.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

Cash and equivalents at September 29, 2018 were $1.8 million. At quarter end, the Company had a convertible notes liability with a total face value of $68.4 million and nothing borrowed on its revolving line of credit.

Capital expenditures were $9.0 million in the quarter with funds primarily expended on IT and other digital investments.

2018 Outlook

The Company is providing guidance around the key levers that drive the business. Specifically:

Full year comparable sales of negative low to mid-single digits.

Reported full year gross margin rate of 31.0% to 31.5%. This includes charges associated with assortment optimization and North Bergen closure this year. Excluding those charges, full year gross margin rate of 31.5% - 32.0%. The Company expects improved product margins offset by higher delivery costs and fixed cost deleverage. (See GAAP reconciliation in Table 5.)

Reported full year SG&A expense of $344 million to $349 million including charges shown in Table 4. Excluding those charges, SG&A expenses between $340 million and $345 million. (See GAAP reconciliation in Table 5.)

Combined Federal, State and Local tax rate of 28%. This excludes discrete items estimated at $0.5 million to $1 million.

Full year capital expenditures of approximately $30 million, and includes the opening of two new stores.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Adjusted information is non-GAAP financial information. These supplemental non-GAAP measures should not be considered superior to, or a substitute for, and should be considered in conjunction with the GAAP financial measures presented. The Company believes such non-GAAP financial information facilitates analysis and comparisons of our ongoing business operations because it excludes items that may not be indicative of, or are unrelated to the Company's core operating performance, and may assist investors with comparisons to prior periods and assessing trends in our underlying businesses. These adjustments are consistent with how management views our businesses. Management uses such non-GAAP financial information in making financial, operating and planning decisions and evaluating the Company's ongoing performance. A reconciliation of adjusted financial information to the most directly comparable financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP is shown in Tables 4 and 5.

Webcast
Management will host a conference call to discuss the third quarter 2018 results at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time (ET) today. Interested investors and other parties may listen to the simultaneous webcast of the conference call by logging onto the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at www.vitaminshoppe.com. A telephonic replay will be available beginning at 11:30 a.m. ET on November 7, 2018 and can be accessed by dialing 1-844-512-2921 or 1-412-317-6671 for international callers. The passcode for the replay is 2549154. The telephonic replay will be available until 11:59 p.m. ET on November 14, 2018. The webcast will also be archived on the company's website at www.vitaminshoppe.com in the investor relations section.

About the Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. (NYSE:VSI)
Vitamin Shoppe is an omni-channel, specialty retailer of nutritional products based in Secaucus, New Jersey. In its stores and on its website, the Company carries a comprehensive retail assortment including: vitamins, minerals, specialty supplements, herbs, sports nutrition, homeopathic remedies, green living products, and beauty aids. In addition to offering products from approximately 700 national brands, the Vitamin Shoppe also carries products under The Vitamin Shoppe®, BodyTech®, True Athlete®, MyTrition®, plnt®, ProBioCare®, and Next Step® brands. The Vitamin Shoppe conducts business through more than 775 company-operated retail stores under The Vitamin Shoppe and Super Supplements retail banners, and through its website, www.vitaminshoppe.com. Follow the Vitamin Shoppe on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/THEVITAMINSHOPPE and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/VitaminShoppe.

Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including, without limitation, those that contain words such as "outlook", "believes", "expects", "potential", "continues", "may", "will", "should", "seeks", "predicts", "intends", "plans", "estimates", "anticipates", "target", "could" or the negative version of these words or other comparable words. These statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside our control, including, among others, strength of the economy, changes in the overall level of consumer spending, the performance of the Company's products within the prevailing retail environment, implementation of our strategy, compliance with regulations, certifications and best practices with respect to the development, manufacture, sale and marketing of the Company's products, management changes, maintaining appropriate levels of inventory, changes in tax policy, ecommerce relationships, disruptions of manufacturing, warehouse or distribution facilities or information systems, regulatory environment and other specific factors discussed herein and in other Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") filings by us (including our reports on Forms 10-K and 10-Q filed with the SEC). We believe that all forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions when made; however, we caution that it is impossible to predict actual results or outcomes or the effects of risks, uncertainties or other factors on anticipated results or outcomes with certainty and that, accordingly, one should not place undue reliance on these statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date when made and we undertake no obligation to update these statements in light of subsequent events or developments. Actual results may differ materially from anticipated results or outcomes discussed in any forward-looking statement.

TABLE 1

VITAMIN SHOPPE, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(In thousands, except share and per share data)

(Unaudited)

Three Months Ended

Nine Months Ended

September 29,

September 30,

September 29,

September 30,

2018

2017

2018

2017

Net sales

$ 276,636

$ 282,407

$ 865,703

$ 884,599

Cost of goods sold

189,945

195,789

591,665

601,678

Gross profit

86,691

86,618

274,038

282,921

Selling, general and administrative expenses

82,747

84,423

260,263

246,168

Goodwill, tradename and store fixed-assets impairment charges

718

106,000

1,551

274,090

Income (loss) from operations

3,226

(103,805)

12,224

(237,337)

Gain on extinguishment of debt

-

-

16,229

-

Interest expense, net

1,289

2,426

5,429

7,212

Income (loss) before provision (benefit) for income taxes

1,937

(106,231)

23,024

(244,549)

Provision (benefit) for income taxes

57

(22,867)

6,204

(24,664)

Net income (loss) from continuing operations

1,880

(83,364)

16,820

(219,885)

Net loss from discontinued operations, net of tax

(3,626)

(2,786)

(15,245)

(14,688)

Net income (loss)

$ (1,746)

$ (86,150)

$ 1,575

$ (234,573)

Weighted average common shares outstanding

Basic

23,545,842

23,152,645

23,477,982

23,070,781

Diluted

23,545,842

23,152,645

23,743,856

23,070,781

Net income (loss) from continuing operations per common share

Basic

$ 0.08

$ (3.60)

$ 0.72

$ (9.53)

Diluted

$ 0.08

$ (3.60)

$ 0.71

$ (9.53)

Net loss from discontinued operations per common share

Basic

$ (0.15)

$ (0.12)

$ (0.65)

$ (0.64)

Diluted

$ (0.15)

$ (0.12)

$ (0.64)

$ (0.64)

Net income (loss) per common share

Basic

$ (0.07)

$ (3.72)

$ 0.07

$ (10.17)

Diluted

$ (0.07)

$ (3.72)

$ 0.07

$ (10.17)

TABLE 2

VITAMIN SHOPPE, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY

Key Performance Indicators and Store Info

($ in thousands)

(Unaudited)

Three Months Ended

Nine Months Ended

September 29,

September 30,

September 29,

September 30,

2018

2017

2018

2017

Decrease in total comparable net sales

(1.9)%

(6.6)%

(2.2)%

(7.1)%

Decrease in comparable store net sales

(4.7)%

(7.0)%

(5.5)%

(6.8)%

Increase (Decrease) in digital comparable net sales

22.1 %

(2.7)%

26.2 %

(9.3)%

Gross profit from continuing operations as a percent of net sales

31.3 %

30.7 %

31.7 %

32.0 %

Income (Loss) from continuing operations as a percent of net sales

1.2 %

(36.8)%

1.4 %

(26.8)%

Capital Expenditures

$ 8,950

$ 14,936

$ 24,655

$ 43,314

Depreciation and Amortization

$ 10,504

$ 7,709

$ 32,002

$ 23,548

Store Data:

Stores open at beginning of period

782

783

785

775

Stores opened

1

3

2

12

Stores closed

(3)

(2)

(7)

(3)

Stores open at end of period

780

784

780

784

Total retail square footage at end of period (in thousands)

2,718

2,733

2,718

2,733

TABLE 3

VITAMIN SHOPPE, INC. AND SUBSIDIARY

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(In thousands, except share and per share data)

(Unaudited)

September 29,

December 30,

2018

2017

ASSETS

Current assets:

Cash and cash equivalents

$ 1,792

$ 1,947

Inventories

188,400

218,087

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

40,756

39,473

Current assets held for sale

-

22,625

Total current assets

230,948

282,132

Property and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization of $310,789 and $334,082 in
2018 and 2017, respectively